Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park is located in Montana, bordering the
Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. The park
encompasses over 1,000,000 acres and includes parts of two
mountain ranges, over 130 named lakes, more than 1,000 different
species of plants and hundreds of species of animals. This vast
pristine ecosystem is the centerpiece of what has been referred
to as the "Crown of the Continent Ecosystem", a region of
protected land encompassing 16,000 square miles.
The region that became Glacier National Park was first inhabited
by Native Americans and upon the arrival of European explorers,
was dominated by the Blackfeet in the east and the Flathead in
the western regions. Soon after the establishment of the park on
May 11, 1910, a number of hotels and chalets were constructed by
the Great Northern Railway. These historic hotels and chalets
are listed as National Historic Landmarks, and a total of 350
locations are on the National Register of Historic Places. By
1932, work was completed on the Going-to-the-Sun Road, later
designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, which
provided greater accessibility for automobiles into the heart of
the park.
Glaciers
Glacier National Park is dominated by mountains which were
carved into their present shapes by the huge glaciers of the
last ice age; these glaciers have largely disappeared over
the last 12,000 years. Evidence of widespread glacial action
is found throughout the park in the form of U-shaped
valleys, glacial cirques, arêtes and large outflow lakes
radiating like fingers from the base of the highest peaks.
Since the end of the ice ages, various warming and cooling
trends have occurred. The last recent cooling trend was
during the Little Ice Age which took place approximately
between 1550 and 1850. During the Little Ice Age, the
glaciers in the park expanded and advanced, although to
nowhere near as great an extent as they had during the Ice
Age.
Things to do at Glacier
Glacier is distant from major cities, and the closest
airport is at Kalispell, Montana, southwest of the park.
Amtrak trains stop at East and West Glacier. A fleet of
restored 1930s White Motor Company coaches, called Red
jammers, offer tours on all the main roads in the park. The
drivers of the buses are called "Jammers," due to the
gear-jamming that formerly occurred during the vehicles'
operation. The tour buses were rebuilt in 2001. The buses
were rebuilt by Ford Motor Company. The bodies were removed
from their original chassis and built on modern Ford
E-Series van chassis. They were also converted to run on
propane, to lessen their environmental impact.
A number of historic wooden tour boats, some dating back to
the 1920s, operate on several of the larger lakes. Several
of these boats have been in continuous seasonal operation on
the major lakes of Glacier National Park since 1927 and
carry up to 80 tourists.
Hiking is a popular activity in the park. Over half of the
visitors to the park report taking a hike on the park's
nearly 700 miles of trails. 110 miles of the Continental
Divide National Scenic Trail spans most of the distance of
the park north to south, with a few alternative routes at
lower elevations if high altitude passes are closed due to
snow. Due to the presence of bears and other large mammals,
dogs are not permitted on any trails in the park, though
they are permitted at front country campsites that can be
accessed by a vehicle, and along paved roads. Anyone
entering the United States over land or waterway from Canada
must have an appropriate passport with them.
